fightful

Update on Naito's future

Added 2025-04-16 17:54:17 +0000 UTC

Tetsuya Naito is finishing up with New Japan, where he was expected to be for the rest of his career.

Fightful had confirmed Tokyo Sports' report on April 1 that Naito was working without a contract. With the news officially being revealed, there has been natural speculation to where he could end up.

We reported early this morning that Naito had been exploring his options. One place we've been told repeatedly that it would be a surprise if he ended up in AEW. It was reiterated that anything is possible and it was nothing on a personal level, just that the higher ups in the company had not had interest in him outside of occasional appearances.

Naito has battled injuries the last couple of years that have led to his in-ring work suffering.